Before a ball was kicked in Foxborough on Tuesday night, a moment happened in the pre-match handshake line that stopped social media in its tracks.
England and Tottenham right-back, Djed Spence extended no hand to Ghana’s Thomas Partey. And the whole world noticed.
Social media footage showed Spence appearing to decline to shake hands with Partey during the pre-match introductions before England’s Group L clash with Ghana at the World Cup.
It was a split-second moment, barely visible in real time. But the cameras caught it, the clips spread, and within minutes the debate was raging across every platform.
Cameras notably panned away from Partey entirely during the handshake segment, leaving viewers in the UK unable to see how the England players approached the situation.
The deliberate nature of that camera decision only added fuel to the fire.
So Djed Spence followed the English media propaganda and refused Thomas Partey’s handshake.
Ghana fans took to Spence’s Instagram page to respond in kind: “Your legs like chicken sticks”.
Below are some of the comments – errrm for your reading pleasure.#BlackStars #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/MMZXKMmGFI
— Ibrahim Sannie Daara (@SannieDaara) June 24, 2026
Partey’s presence at this World Cup has attracted significant scrutiny.
The former Arsenal midfielder, who now plays for Villarreal in Spain is facing seven charges of rape and two of sexual assault in the United Kingdom, charges he has denied.
England fans in the stadium made their feelings clear from the very first whistle, booing Partey’s early touches on the ball.
On Monday, ahead of the match, Partey had told reporters he felt “OK” and was “ready to play”.
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He was calm and composed on the outside despite the storm swirling around him.
On the pitch, he delivered a disciplined, committed performance as Ghana played England for 90 minutes.
But it was one of the moments that everyone was talking about.
Jude Bellingham, notably shook hands with Partey during the same line, a detail that has split opinion online just as sharply as the snub itself.
Some praised Spence for making a personal moral stand.
Others argued that football’s handshake tradition exists precisely to separate the game from everything outside it.
Nobody has confirmed what Spence was thinking at that moment.
His representatives have not commented. Perhaps, feeling that none is needed. Sometimes a gesture, or the absence of one, speaks loudly enough on its own.
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